Tony Dungy lobbies for Donnie Shell in the Hall of Fame

When Tony Dungy was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, he asked his old teammate Donnie Shell to present him in Canton. Now Dungy wants to see Shell get a bust of his own.

Asked today on PFT Live which former player he thinks is most deserving of a spot in Canton, Dungy didn’t hesitate.

“That would definitely be my old Steelers roommate Donnie Shell. Donnie has 51 interceptions, 19 fumble recoveries, 70 takeaways in his career, four Super Bowl rings. Just an outstanding player and in my opinion should be in the Hall of Fame,” Dungy said.

Shell, a five-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro who played for the Steelers from 1974 to 1987, made the list of 15 Hall of Fame finalists just once, in 2002. He would now have to be nominated by the senior committee, which always seems to have a backlog of good candidates. Shell has so far been overlooked, but Dungy is doing his best to keep his buddy’s name in the voters’ minds.

Donnie Shell couldn’t wear cliff harris’s jock and harris isn’t in…
Bwahaaaaaaaa….Shell beat Harris in every statistical category. Both were awesome at their position and both should be in the hall of fame!

Wholeheartedly agree 100%! Both Shell & Greenwood should be in, and it will remain a travesty until they are finally included!! How in the holy hell can a 2 or 3 year wonder boy like Kurt Warner get gold jacket while these 2 legends of the NFL remain outside looking in?!?

I remember watching those old Steelers games. It seemed to me that, every time the other team was throwing the ball, Shell knew where it was going and was right there to make the play. It didn’t matter if I was cheering for the Steelers or against them, there he was. Put him in the Hall of Fame.

I would have thought Donnie Shell was in the HOF already. Someone else brought up Cliff Harris. Absolutely. He also belongs in the HOF. He was overshadowed by the great Charlie Waters but Harris did it all too.

How are we supposed to have any respect for the Hall of Fame when HOFers like Tony Dungy don’t? Even if Dungy doesn’t really deserve a spot in the HOF, there are hundreds of players who do. I don’t think Dungy is showing a great deal of respect to the guys who actually earned their way in. You give some people an inch and they take a mile.

When Tony Dungy was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, he asked his old teammate Donnie Shell to present him in Canton. Now Dungy wants to see Shell get a bust of his own. Asked today on PFT Live which former player he thinks is most deserving of a spot in Canton, Dungy […]

Butler and Lake have never been finalists. Butler played in 2 Super Bowls, and was a 4x All-Pro.

Reed and Polamalu are pretty much absolute locks.

Sharper was a 6x All Pro. He holds the NFL record for int return yards in a single season, and is tied with Rod and Charles Woodson for the most all-time int return touchdowns. Sharper would have been a lock in comparison to Rodney Harrison.
Aside from the All-deacade guys, we have John Lynch, Tim McDonald, Darren Woodson, and Rod Woodson who has already been elected.

So was Harrison even a top 10 S in his era? Doesn’t look like it! Except to those of you with Patriot goggles on.

Every single one of these players has a better case than Rodney Harrison. Every one of them. This was a waste of keystrokes.

tommyribs says:
August 3, 2017 at 3:34 pm
Donnie Shell was a good player, but was a cog in the machine and a beneficiary of all of the Great Players in front of him.

He is not a Hall of Fame Level Safety.

I am not a Steelers Hater, I swear I am not, but Donnie Shell just isn’t at that Level.

There’s no way you’ve ever seen Donnie Shell play. I don’t want to hear he was a recipient of all the great players around him. Donnie Shell was a brutal and effective player. Look at his stats. Ask Earl Campbell among other great running backs of that era, just how hard Shell hits. For an undrafted free agent, Donnie Shell did pretty good for himself and the Steelers. A fourteen year career and should’ve been in the HOF years ago.